The Power of Belief
When I was in high school, I was easily the top 5 of my class in pretty much any subject in PE.
Any team sport or individual sport, you name it, I was most likely excelling in that sport.
But the problem was I wasted my whole high school (5 years in Quebec) not actually doing any extra curricular sports except badminton my last year (and I wasn’t that great at it).
Although my PE teachers saw me excel in each sport and also being probably top 1 or top 2 in certain individual athleticism sports such as the “Triple Jump”, they never bothered to ask me to try these sports.
Looking back, I would’ve loved it if my teachers would’ve pushed me to sign-up for one of these sports teams.
I know that it’s not necessarily the teachers job to do that, but at the same time, I believe that’s what teachers should be doing. Or at least good teachers should be doing. If they want to maximize a students development, I think realizing where their strengths are and pushing them in that direction should be the goal.
And you see it in a lot of kids that “make it” that it’s because a certain teacher or coach believed in them and pushed them and that’s in part why they made it.
Believing in someone creates such a strong belief in the person you believe in.
That’s why, when I have kids or if ever I’m in a position that I can help someone or I see potential in someone, I definitely make sure to tell them and highlight their strengths so they can push themselves.